


why must the cute ones (me) suffer?

by loonyloopyluna



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alternate Universe, Besties Swap AU, animan - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-20
Updated: 2016-12-20
Packaged: 2018-09-10 17:33:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,322
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8926087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loonyloopyluna/pseuds/loonyloopyluna
Summary: The events of Animan, with a twist. Friendships are different, everything's a lot less gay than expected, but at least Nino's still a mess who can't talk to girls.





	

Nino was leaning against the wall of the courtyard, headphones on, and most definitely not staring. **  
**

Okay, he was staring, but not _at_ anyone. He was watching for his ever-tardy best friend to arrive, and it wasn’t necessarily his fault that he was situated in such a way that his eyes naturally fell upon Adrien and Alya, discussing something across the way.

And it was only because he had gotten wrapped up in his music that Marinette managed to escape his attention until she tapped his shoulder.

He let out a less-than-dignified shriek and ripped off his headphones. “Nino?” Marinette asked, face morphing from weary cheerfulness to mild concern. “Are you all right?”

“Me? I’m–” His voice sounded unusually high, so he cleared it and said gruffly, “I’m fine.” His gaze flicked out to the courtyard again; heads had turned at the scene he’d made, but Adrien and Alya appeared undisturbed.

He realized belatedly that Marinette was still trying to talk to him.

Unfortunately, she’d already caught on that he wasn’t listening.

“Seriously, Nino, what’s wrong?” she asked. “You keep zoning out.”

“Nobo–nothing!,” he insisted, but his eyes, the traitors, kept wandering.

“Does nobody’s name happen to start with an ‘A’?” Marinette asked, following his gaze.

Nino’s ears burned, and he looked furtively around to make sure no one was listening before dragging Marinette around the corner.

“Yes, okay?” he admitted. “I might’ve been thinking about some things recently, and then the sun was coming in at a really nice angle and I was just–”

Marinette squealed, trying (and failing) to hide her grin behind her hands. “I knew it! You have a crush!”

“Whoa, dude, I don’t know if I’d go that far,” he said.

“I mean, I get it,” she said. “Adrien is cute.”

“Yeah,” Nino agreed. Then, “No, wait. Alya. I was talking about Alya.”

“Oh, that’s even better,” she said. “Honestly, Adrien might be a little out of your league. I was afraid I was going to have to fight you, though.”

“What? Are you saying I couldn’t get a date with a model?” he asked.

“I thought you wanted a date with Alya?”

“Keep your voice down!” he hissed, though they were both speaking just barely above a whisper. “But I wouldn’t know what to say or how to–” He grasped at his baseball cap. “What do I even do? Just go up and crack a joke? Ask her out?”

Marinette reached up and removed his hands from his head, holding them firmly in her own. “Hey, calm down,” she said. “Yeah, you could ask her out. What about the zoo?”

“The zoo,” he repeated flatly.

“They just got a new panther,” she shrugged. “Besides, it’s a public place so it’s not like it would be just the two of you. In case things get awkward.”

“Mari, I am the _master_ of smooth,” he insisted. She raised an eyebrow. “Okay, fine. You’re right. I’ll ask her to the zoo.” Nino waited a beat, and she looked at him expectantly. “Wait, you mean now?”

“No time like the present!” she said merrily, already making her way over. He dashed after her.

“I was thinking I could maybe have some time to plan what I’m going to–okay, no? Cool,” he muttered, his mouth locking shut as they reached Adrien and Alya.

“Morning!” Adrien said cheerfully.

“M-morning,” Nino repeated robotically.

“So, Alya,” Marinette began. “Nino and I were just talking. Apparently the zoo got a new panther. Would you be interested in going?”

Alya looked between Nino, staring determinedly at a spot on the wall above her head, and Marinette, who was grinning manically at her, and managed a weak chuckle. “Um… sure?”

“Four o’clock, okay? Great!” Marinette exclaimed. She dug her elbow into her best friend’s side. “Isn’t that great, Nino?”

“Uh, yup. Great. That’s really pretty girl–I mean, pretty great. It’s, uh–”

The warning bell rang then, thankfully, preventing Nino from continuing to talk.

* * *

 **meatball model:** well, i guess you were wrong. marinette doesn’t have a crush on me

 **alyabae:** wtf are you talking abt of course she does

 **meatball model:** she literally just asked u out on a date??

 **alyabae:** no she didn’t???

 **alyabae:** OH

 **meatball model:** bruh

 **alyabae:** i thought it was just like a friend thing

 **alyabae:** you know like gal pals

 **meatball model:** Gal Pals™

 **alyabae:** oh fcck

 **alyabae:** like are u sure

 **meatball model:** listen i’ve been asked out enough

 **meatball model:** i knOW

 **alyabae:** idk i feel like

 **alyabae:** maybe she didn’t mean it like that

 **alyabae:** if it’s just a friend thing i don’t want to make it weird

 **alyabae:** tbh i’d prefer it i need more friends

 **meatball model:** ??? hi??

 **alyabae:** you’re never around don’t give me that

* * *

“Stay put, and you’ll be safe.” Ladybug shut the door to the cage, trapping Alya and Nino together.

Their date, if it could even be called that, had been awful so far. Alya seemed to be enjoying the zoo, but Nino had barely been able to string a sentence together without stuttering. He was starting to regret not bringing Marinette along for backup.

Nino turned to Alya. “Um… sorry?”

She sighed and clapped a hand to her forehead. She was missing all the action. As owner and moderator of the Ladyblog, she felt almost obligated to be in the thick of things.

Nino cleared his throat. “Actually,” he continued, “I wanted to talk to you about something.”

“Me too,” Alya replied. “I thought Marinette was coming?”

“No!” he yelled. He lifted his cap and scratched under it. “Sorry. Uh, n-no, it’s just the two of us,” he said, at a respectable speaking volume. “You. And me. Together.”

“Right. Well, it’s just–” She chuckled. “Marinette was the one that asked. And Adrien was convinced this was going to be a date or something.”

“A date with Marinette?” he sputtered. “But she doesn’t like you!”

“Wow, thanks.”

“N-no, I didn’t mean it like that!” he backtracked. “She likes Adrien, and I–”

“You what?” Alya asked. He shook his head, so she put her hand on his shoulder reassuringly and said, “I think I know. You like her, don’t you?”

Nino started to nod. “Wait, no, what? Why does everybody– No!” He took a deep breath. “Um, I like _you_.”

“Oh.”

The seconds wore on silently, and Nino’s gripped his headphones nervously.

“I just… I’ve never thought about you that way, Nino,” Alya said gently.

He nodded. “Right. Okay.”

She reached out tentatively. “I see you as, like, my brother. I’m sorry.”

He met her eyes and grinned awkwardly. “But the hot brother, right? Like the one that all your friends secretly have a crush on even, though I’m way too cool for them.”

She rolled her eyes. “Obviously.”

They didn’t say anything for a while, and while Nino was acutely aware of Alya’s hand on his arm, she seemed to have forgotten. They watched the pandemonium outside the safety of their cage abate as the animals found their way out of the zoo. When the coast was clear, Alya walked over to the cage door and jiggled the handle; it opened.

“Um, I’m going to go see if I can get any of this for the Ladyblog,” Alya said. “Are we– we’re good, right?”

Nino nodded. “Yeah. We’re good.”

* * *

He wasn’t, as it turned out. Later, after he’d gone home and tried to smother himself in his pillow, Marinette called him for the details.

“How’d it go?” She sounded hopeful, and Nino winced.

He rolled over onto his back. “Well, first there was that… Animan? He kind of put a dent in things. And then Ladybug stuck us in a cage together. So I told her. And she doesn’t like me.”

“Oh, Nino…” Marinette said.

“Hey, it’s cool.”

“Is it, though?” she asked.

“…no,” he said, his voice small.

“Did you want me to come over?” Silence. “Are you nodding?”

“…yeah.”

**Author's Note:**

> originally posted on tumblr [x](http://chatchevalier.tumblr.com/post/149009026106/day-2-aufriends)


End file.
